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Sudha Ragunathan
Sudha Ragunathan is an Indian Carnatic vocalist, singer and composer. She was conferred the Kalaimamani award by the Government of Tamil Nadu in 1994, Padma Shri (2004) and Padma Bhushan (2015) by the Government of India, and Sangeetha Kalanidhi by Madras Music Academy in 2013.
Sudha Ragunathan (née Sudha Venkatraman) was born in Chennai on 30 April 1957 and later shifted to Bangalore. She did her schooling in Good Shepherd Convent, Chennai. She studied at Ethiraj College, and obtained a postgraduate degree in economics.
Sudha Ragunathan received her initial training in Carnatic music from her mother V. Choodamani. From the age of three, she began to learn bhajans, Hindu devotional songs. Her tutelage continued under B. V. Lakshman. In 1977, she received an Indian government scholarship to study music under a doyenne of Carnatic music, Dr. M.L Vasantha Kumari, whose student she remained for thirteen years.
Trained under Dr. ML Vasanthakumari in the gurukula style, it involved considerable amounts of listening to the teacher and other practitioners to absorb their style and oeuvre. Part of her duties involved the accompaniment on the tanpura of her teacher during concerts, and also accompanying her during concerts. In her own words, "A period of 13 years from 1977 to 1990, a phase of complete absorption and internalisation! There was no teaching in a formal atmosphere. We learnt while being with her during the katcheris (concerts). We would record her singing in our minds and then replay it while learning the intricacies. It was a very challenging and different experience and as I had begun learning very early from her, my mind was like a sponge and absorbed whatever I heard".
As of January 2015, she was preparing to debut in Kollywood as a music director with the upcoming Tamil film Thanneer, based on a novel published in 2009 by Ashokamitran.
Ragunathan has performed at the Madras Music Season every year since 1990, the year in which her guru Dr. ML Vasanthakumari died. She is considered one of India's leading Carnatic performers. In 2013 she was awarded the Sangita Kalanidhi of the Madras Music Academy. She was awarded the Padma Bhushan, India's third-highest civilian honor, in January 2015.
On 2 October 2016, the United Nations released a stamp to honour India's Carnatic music artist Bharat Ratna Dr.M S Subbulakshmi. This stamp was presented to Raghunathan to honour her performance at the United Nations on 2 October 2016.
In August 2025, in an interview with The Hindu, she credited Chennai and its unique Margazhi season for anchoring her art, describing the city as one of “soul and substance” where tradition meets modernity.
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Sudha Ragunathan
Sudha Ragunathan is an Indian Carnatic vocalist, singer and composer. She was conferred the Kalaimamani award by the Government of Tamil Nadu in 1994, Padma Shri (2004) and Padma Bhushan (2015) by the Government of India, and Sangeetha Kalanidhi by Madras Music Academy in 2013.
Sudha Ragunathan (née Sudha Venkatraman) was born in Chennai on 30 April 1957 and later shifted to Bangalore. She did her schooling in Good Shepherd Convent, Chennai. She studied at Ethiraj College, and obtained a postgraduate degree in economics.
Sudha Ragunathan received her initial training in Carnatic music from her mother V. Choodamani. From the age of three, she began to learn bhajans, Hindu devotional songs. Her tutelage continued under B. V. Lakshman. In 1977, she received an Indian government scholarship to study music under a doyenne of Carnatic music, Dr. M.L Vasantha Kumari, whose student she remained for thirteen years.
Trained under Dr. ML Vasanthakumari in the gurukula style, it involved considerable amounts of listening to the teacher and other practitioners to absorb their style and oeuvre. Part of her duties involved the accompaniment on the tanpura of her teacher during concerts, and also accompanying her during concerts. In her own words, "A period of 13 years from 1977 to 1990, a phase of complete absorption and internalisation! There was no teaching in a formal atmosphere. We learnt while being with her during the katcheris (concerts). We would record her singing in our minds and then replay it while learning the intricacies. It was a very challenging and different experience and as I had begun learning very early from her, my mind was like a sponge and absorbed whatever I heard".
As of January 2015, she was preparing to debut in Kollywood as a music director with the upcoming Tamil film Thanneer, based on a novel published in 2009 by Ashokamitran.
Ragunathan has performed at the Madras Music Season every year since 1990, the year in which her guru Dr. ML Vasanthakumari died. She is considered one of India's leading Carnatic performers. In 2013 she was awarded the Sangita Kalanidhi of the Madras Music Academy. She was awarded the Padma Bhushan, India's third-highest civilian honor, in January 2015.
On 2 October 2016, the United Nations released a stamp to honour India's Carnatic music artist Bharat Ratna Dr.M S Subbulakshmi. This stamp was presented to Raghunathan to honour her performance at the United Nations on 2 October 2016.
In August 2025, in an interview with The Hindu, she credited Chennai and its unique Margazhi season for anchoring her art, describing the city as one of “soul and substance” where tradition meets modernity.
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